5 things you might not know about vaccines

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1. Grownups need shots too.

Are you ready to roll up your sleeve to protect your children (and yourself) from life-threatening diseases?

Even if you got all your immunizations as a child, you're not fully protected. You may be due for a booster (immunity can fade over time) or a new vaccine that wasn't available before. For example, the Tdap vaccine can prevent you from getting whooping cough and passing it on to your children. Whooping cough can be life-threatening for babies, and it's on the rise in many areas.

Would you believe people were inoculated against smallpox 800 years ago? Putting germs in your body to build up immunity – the basic idea behind immunization – may seem like a modern idea, but it's actually centuries old. The story of smallpox reveals just how long this practice has been around.

We found five reasons this might happen. For one thing, the immunity your body develops in response to vaccines fades over time. (That's why you need a tetanus booster every ten years.) Learn the other four reasons and find out what to do if you do come down with something.

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